New York State Common Retirement Fund Decreases Stock Holdings in Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA)

New York State Common Retirement Fund lowered its stake in shares of Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA) by 2.8% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 34,378 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after selling 1,000 shares during the period. New York State Common Retirement Fund’s holdings in Murphy USA were worth $17,249,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Larson Financial Group LLC boosted its holdings in Murphy USA by 5.4% during the third quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 391 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $193,000 after buying an additional 20 shares in the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. lifted its stake in shares of Murphy USA by 6.4% during the fourth quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 347 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $174,000 after buying an additional 21 shares during the period. Measured Wealth Private Client Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of Murphy USA by 2.8% during the fourth quarter. Measured Wealth Private Client Group LLC now owns 967 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $485,000 after buying an additional 26 shares during the period. V Square Quantitative Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Murphy USA by 37.0% during the fourth quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 100 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $50,000 after buying an additional 27 shares during the period. Finally, Mustard Seed Financial LLC raised its stake in Murphy USA by 2.7% during the fourth quarter. Mustard Seed Financial LLC now owns 1,123 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $564,000 after purchasing an additional 30 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.81% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on MUSA shares. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Murphy USA from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, February 15th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of Murphy USA from $555.00 to $550.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on shares of Murphy USA from $550.00 to $554.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Murphy USA presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $510.80.

Insider Activity at Murphy USA

In related news, Director Rosemary Turner sold 797 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $496.10, for a total transaction of $395,391.70. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 9.04% of the company’s stock.

Murphy USA Price Performance

Murphy USA stock opened at $445.19 on Friday. Murphy USA Inc. has a 52-week low of $382.04 and a 52-week high of $561.08. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $495.66 and a 200-day moving average of $504.99. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.40 and a beta of 0.79. The company has a quick ratio of 0.37, a current ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.18.

Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The specialty retailer reported $6.96 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.46 by $0.50. Murphy USA had a net margin of 2.48% and a return on equity of 61.60%. As a group, analysts predict that Murphy USA Inc. will post 26.45 EPS for the current year.

Murphy USA Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 5th. Investors of record on Monday, February 24th will be issued a dividend of $0.49 per share. This represents a $1.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.44%. This is a positive change from Murphy USA’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.48. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, February 24th. Murphy USA’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 7.93%.

About Murphy USA

Murphy USA Inc engages in marketing of retail motor fuel products and convenience merchandise. The company operates retail stores under the Murphy USA, Murphy Express, and QuickChek brands, as well as operates non-fuel convenience stores. It operates retail gasoline stores principally in the Southeast, Southwest, and Midwest United States.